Deep within the underground laboratory of the Red Ribbon Army.
Uchiha Hikari finally met Dr. Gero.
Since the timeline was still early, the doctor didn't look as aged as he would in the Android Saga. He appeared to be in his mid-fifties, dressed in a white lab coat, with graying hair and a balding, Mediterranean-style haircut that screamed genius.
Standing beside him was a woman in her thirties with wavy chestnut hair, wearing black-framed glasses and exuding a slightly disheveled, laid-back vibe.
"And who's this?"
Uchiha Hikari had a hunch about the woman's identity but glanced at the Black Adjutant for confirmation.
The Black Adjutant quickly spoke up, "She's another scientist in our army, named Vomi. She's Dr. Gero's assistant, specializing in weapons research…"
"Oh…"
Uchiha Hikari nodded, her eyes glinting with curiosity.
The name "Vomi" sounded unfamiliar at first.
But if you mentioned her other name, things would click—Android 21.
That's right.
In the Dragon Ball world, Dr. Gero created a total of 20 androids, with "Android 20" being himself, who later died at the hands of Android 17 in the Android Saga. Cell was also one of Gero's creations, but since he was developed by a computer after Gero's death, he's considered separate.
As for "Android 21," that was Vomi herself. Using her own body as a base, she was fused with Majin Buu's cells to create her, making her one of only two female androids alongside Android 18. She was likely the strongest of all the androids Gero ever produced.
—Oh, and by the way, Vomi was Dr. Gero's partner. They had two sons together, the eldest of whom passed away young and served as the prototype for Android 16.
But all of that was still a decade or two away.
At this point in time, Dr. Gero and Vomi's research hadn't progressed that far. They'd only just created "Android 8," the big, lovable oaf from Muscle Tower.
Android 8 had some strength, probably around 50 or 60 points, roughly on par with kid Goku in this era. But compared to the later androids with battle powers in the billions, he was practically a speck—not even a fraction of their might.
Truth be told, Uchiha Hikari was most curious about Android 18.
But given the timeline, 18 was probably still under ten years old, chilling somewhere on Earth with her brother, 17. Hikari couldn't exactly go kidnap her and hand her over to Dr. Gero for modification, so she let the idea go.
"…Black Adjutant, who are these women?"
Dr. Gero frowned.
Since the lab was underground, the chaos that had unfolded above ground hadn't reached them. Dr. Gero was still unaware that the Red Ribbon Army had been wiped out by Uchiha Hikari and Esdeath.
But faced with two unfamiliar faces, his instincts kicked in, and he grew wary.
"They're…"
The Black Adjutant hesitated.
He couldn't exactly blurt out that Hikari and Esdeath were the ones who destroyed the Red Ribbon Army. That'd probably get him killed before he could leave the lab.
On the other side, Uchiha Hikari smiled lightly and extended her right hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm the new leader of the Red Ribbon Army. You can call me Marshal Hikari."
"?"
…
After meeting Dr. Gero, the Black Adjutant was no longer useful.
Using her "Yasaka no Magatama," Hikari probed his mind to locate the Red Ribbon Army's hidden treasure stashes. After cross-checking with Commander Red's information to ensure nothing was missed, she casually dismissed him, planning to deal with him permanently in a few days.
—For now, the Red Ribbon Army still had some branch bases and remnants scattered around. It wasn't clear if they'd contact headquarters, so the Black Adjutant still had some minor value. He could live a little longer.
Next, Hikari spent a full day carefully probing the memories of Dr. Gero and Vomi.
She had to be cautious.
These two were special. Unlike the others whose memories she'd checked, their most valuable asset was their brilliant minds. If she accidentally damaged their brain cells while altering their memories, ruining their genius, this whole trip would be for nothing.
"…I see. So the reason he's so loyal to the Red Ribbon Army is because Commander Red once saved his son's life by chance?"
"Then, if I replaced his son with myself in his memories…"
Hikari considered it for a moment but quickly scrapped the idea.
She wasn't keen on playing daughter to anyone. Plus, while Dr. Gero wasn't exactly a saint, his love for his son was genuine. Toying with that felt a bit wrong.
So instead, Hikari crafted a detailed story and implanted it into Dr. Gero and Vomi's minds.
In this story, the Red Ribbon Army's destruction had nothing to do with her or Esdeath.
It was all the work of someone named "Frieza."
Frieza, a member of the Frost Demon race from the depths of space, dubbed the "Emperor of the Universe," happened to pass by Earth. On a whim, he unleashed an energy blast that triggered a massive blizzard, freezing everything for dozens of miles.
General Blue and the other officers all perished in that storm.
Only she, "Marshal Hikari," survived, thanks to the desperate protection of her "Adjutant Esdeath."
Yup… since Androids 16, 17, and 18 would eventually rival Super Saiyans in strength, using Frieza as an imaginary enemy wasn't too far-fetched for Dr. Gero. And while Frieza wasn't exactly "frosty" in ability, he was a Frost Demon, so pinning the blame on him for Esdeath's ice-based destruction wasn't too much of a stretch. Esdeath herself didn't mind, so Frieza probably wouldn't either.
To ensure this takeover went flawlessly, Hikari went a step further. After altering Dr. Gero's memories, she pulled out Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan and hit him with a "Kotoamatsukami."
This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment move.
She'd planned it before coming to the Dragon Ball world. To prepare, Hikari had taken a blind crow, transplanted Shisui's eyes into it, and brought it along. As she activated "Kotoamatsukami," one of the crow's eyes dimmed, but Dr. Gero's altered memories were reinforced, becoming unshakably ingrained.
"That should do it…"
With this double-layered precaution in place, Hikari let out a small sigh of relief and turned her attention back.
Nearby, Esdeath, who had witnessed the whole thing, wore a subtle expression, as if she wanted to say something but held back.
"What's up, Esdeath?"
Hikari noticed her microexpression.
"You…"
Esdeath hesitated before being blunt. "Did you just use an ability to alter his memories? How else could that old man's attitude toward you change so drastically?"
"Something like that," Hikari admitted with a nod. "The Uchiha clan's Mangekyō Sharingan holds special powers called 'ocular techniques.' Some of them can manipulate a person's will."
"…"
"Don't worry, Esdeath. I'd never mess with your memories," Hikari said, sensing her friend's concern. She flashed a bright, sincere smile. "I don't use that kind of power on friends—only on truly despicable people. Besides, it doesn't work on someone with a strong enough will."
Until now, Hikari had never revealed to anyone that she could rewrite someone's will.
It was a terrifying ability, one that could make even close allies wary if they knew about it.
This was the first time she'd openly mentioned it.
Of course, she still held back a bit. She only mentioned "Kotoamatsukami" and skimmed over the details of "Yasaka no Magatama."
After a brief pause, Esdeath's expression softened.
"I get it. So it's like the abilities of the ice beast from 'Demon's Extract,' right?"
"…Huh?"
Hikari hadn't thought of it that way but nodded after a moment. "Yeah, you could say that."
In the Akame ga Kill! world, some super-dangerous beasts, like "Demon's Extract" or "Demon Entanglement," could erode a person's will. While erosion and rewriting weren't exactly the same, they both involved altering memories, so the comparison wasn't far off.
With Esdeath satisfied, Hikari turned her focus back to Dr. Gero. Under his and Vomi's guidance, she began inspecting the weapons and equipment displayed in the lab.
"Marshal Hikari, this is the 'Dragon Radar' built to your specifications. Just press this button, and it'll locate the Dragon Balls… like so."
As Dr. Gero spoke, he operated a massive radar detector resembling a supercomputer, explaining its functions to Hikari.
Next to it was a Five-Star Dragon Ball, its energy not yet fully restored, stored in a translucent glass container.
Hikari wasn't surprised by these items.
She'd already probed the memories of Commander Red, the Black Adjutant, and Dr. Gero.
From those memories, she learned that Commander Red had been obsessed with the Dragon Balls for a while. Last summer, he'd witnessed Shenron's summoning and the sky darkening, then researched ancient texts and learned the legend that "Dragon Balls can grant any wish." That sparked his greed.
By chance, the Five-Star Dragon Ball had flown near the Red Ribbon Army's headquarters after a wish was made and was found by a sentry. This gave them a chance to study it further.
For most of the past year, the Dragon Ball had been in its dormant stone state, indistinguishable from an ordinary rock.
It was only in the last few weeks that its energy began to recover. Dr. Gero analyzed its energy wavelength through spectral analysis and built this radar detector based on that.
While Gero's radar wasn't as compact or convenient as Bulma's Dragon Radar, its technical sophistication was impressive.
"Let's talk about the Dragon Radar later. First, show me the rest. Are these the new weapons you developed for… for me, the Marshal?" Hikari's gaze shifted to the other side of the lab.
"Of course."
Dr. Gero nodded and began introducing the other research成果:
"This is a new single-person airship, capable of unmanned flight, with a top speed of Mach 15…"
"This is the latest wearable robot, made of tungsten-titanium alloy. It's manned, a bit bulky, but lightweight. The slots under the body can hold four micro-missiles, each with the power of ten tons of TNT—enough to destroy a fortress the size of the Red Ribbon Army's headquarters in seconds."
"And this is my latest prototype: a high-energy particle beam gun. It fires specialized particle beam bullets that can kill enemies instantly, with dozens of times the power of standard firearms. But it still needs work, mainly on the energy side. With the current energy source, it can only fire ten shots before needing a recharge."
Of all the items, the particle beam gun caught Hikari's attention.
Its sleek, sci-fi design looked straight out of a movie, complete with a row of subtle, luxurious colored lights that lit up along the stock and scope when the safety was disengaged. It was undeniably cool.
Following Dr. Gero's instructions, Hikari aimed at a humanoid target a hundred meters away and fired. The target vaporized instantly. Casually, she asked, "Why not solve the energy issue with a 'perpetual energy reactor'?"
"Huh?"
Dr. Gero looked baffled. "What's that?"
"?"
Hikari paused, surprised. "You haven't developed that yet?"
The "perpetual energy reactor" she referred to was the infinite energy source installed in Androids 17 and 18.
But…
That tech only debuted when 17 and 18 emerged from the lab. Even then, no other androids had it, suggesting its production cost and technical complexity were high, even for someone like Dr. Gero. Mass production was likely impossible.
And twenty years earlier, in the present timeline, Dr. Gero probably hadn't even laid the theoretical groundwork for it, let alone built one.
Come to think of it…
The "perpetual energy reactor" was almost absurdly advanced, on par with Bulma's "time machine" and Dr. Brief's "capsule technology"—the three black-box techs of the Dragon Ball world. It was hard to imagine how Dr. Gero even managed to create it.
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